1. Field of the Invention
The instant invention relates generally to golf gloves, and more particularly, to golf gloves having a removable strap that enhances the firmness with which a golfer grips a golf club, while swinging the golf club.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Golfers constantly search for ways to improve their games. One aspect golfers focus on is the grip. Many golfers find it difficult to maintain a firm grip on the golf club throughout the swing and without unnecessary muscle tension. Golfers also prefer to concentrate on the swing rather than worrying about the grip. Establishing the proper grip is a especially problematic for inexperienced golfers and older persons with arthritis or similar ailments, and when the club gets wet. When a golfer fails to maintain a properly firm grip, alignment or orientation of the club face changes causing an undesirable spin to be imparted on the ball. An desirable spin can cause the ball to "uncontrollably slice" or "hook." On the other hand, if the club is held too tightly, the arm muscles experience too much tension, creating too rigid a swing and inaccurate contact with the ball. Although a proper grip is important for making clean contact with the ball, devoting too much concentration on the grip often jeopardizes the golfer's swing.
Golf gloves are normally worn to prevent the club from slipping and to obtain a comfortable grip. Golf gloves, however, are not capable of singularly enhancing a players grip, as seen in FIG. 1. There is a tendency during the swing, especially at the top of the backswing where the wrist breaks, for the upper hand fingers to loosen or separate from the shaft. This invariably results in rotation of the club and undesirable contact with the ball. As noted, holding a club too tightly can also result in poor contact. The ability to control the firmness and consistency of the grip, can help a golfer drastically reduce slices and hooks and hence improve their score.
A younger golfer may have the strength to retain a firm grip, but they often lack the requisite discipline. On the other hand, older or arthritic persons may have the discipline, but lack the strength. Thus, there exist a need for a gripping aid to help the golfer firmly hold the club during the swing without much thought so that the golfer can concentrate on the particulars of their swing.
There have been many attempts in the background art to provide a golf glove that assist the golfer in its grip. The gloves known provide straps for wrapping around the golfers hand, but either interfere with the golfer, or are ineffective for practical use because of their size, the way they attach to the glove and the orientation on the glove. For instance, some of the straps employed are permanently attached to the glove and cannot be removed when the golfer is putting or attempting a shot that does not necessitate the same firm grip. Other gloves have straps that are either too large or bunch up when the glove is gripped, making it difficult to comfortably hold and feel the club. There are still other gloves which use cumbersome fasteners, fail to remain securely affixed to the glove during use, or neglect to address the other concerns noted herein. Examples of the gloves employing various straps as noted above may be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,553,324; 5,462,280; 5,423,089; 5,033,120; 4,665,565; 3,740,766; 3,559,212; 3,411,159; 3,408,657; 3,348,238; 3,105,972 and 2,852,779.
The above noted background art neither solves nor addresses problems contemplated by the present invention. There remains a need for a golf club grip aiding device for assisting the golfer in firmly and comfortably gripping the club when needed so that the golfer may concentrate on swinging the club and making proper contact with the ball. The present invention solves these problems by providing a golf club grip aiding device that is removably attachable to a golf club and stretches around the golfers hand to assist the golfer in maintaining a firm grip. While the instant invention is described in detail below with respect to golf clubs, this invention works well for any glove in need of enhanced gripping characteristics.